Sole Gift
by Binky Bunny
Summary: If only we could have stayed just kids. Then we wouldn't have had to worry about murder, lies, betrayl, and Chosens. . . If only.[Seles POV. Sequel to Last Respects.]


**Binks: After the response to my last Seles perspective story, Last Respects. . . I decided that I'd do another one. xD Thank you all for supporting such a low-grade writer like myself. **

**Anyway, this is the second story in my Seles POV one-shot series. Series? Dedicated to Seles? What? Actually, it's just fun to write in her perspective – That and her weird clothes make her so loveable . . . if only she didn't have Jimmy Neutron's voice.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Seles, Zelos, Lloyd or anyone else. Namco does. Woot!**

**----**

Once in a _great_ while, the King of Tethealla does something smart. This just happened to be one of those times. Making the actual funeral for my older brother private was one of the greatest things he had ever done for the Wilder family. Well, it didn't help that Lloyd did a little of his indirect arm twisting to make the ceremony private. Lloyd could be smart sometimes—in the Lloyd-kind-of-way.

Lloyd had picked me up from the Abbey about an hour before and brought me to the Wilder Mansion, my first time being there since I was about five. We hadn't uttered a single word to each other during the Reihard ride. I could tell Lloyd was torn apart though. Every look he gave me was one of sorrow—pleading for forgiveness. He was the one who had struck the final blow. He was the one who held Zelos as he uttered his dying confession. He was the one who couldn't save him in the end. I wanted to hug the poor boy and tell him everything would be all right—to assure him that Zelos was happier now, but I couldn't even convince myself this; let alone Lloyd.

"Miss Seles?" Sebastian whispered.

I turned around to look at the downtrodden man. Sebastian had looked after my brother and I since we were little tykes running amuck in Meltokio. He always would smile warmly at the both of us. He was kind and calm, yet loyal and honest. The father figure neither of us had, yet desperately craved. I had a soft spot for this middle-aged butler. To me, he might as well have been our father.

His eyes looked dead. The look of a father has when he has to bury his own son.

It tore me to pieces.

"Yes, Sebastian?" I choked out of my stubborn throat.

"Well, Miss Seles. . . Master Zelos," he stopped to take a deep breath, "had a dress made for you when you were going to leave the Abbey. He designed it himself and was very proud of it. . ."

"A dress?"

"Yes, you see . . . he was so excited when it was finished . . . and I just thought maybe you should wear it to the funeral today. For his sake? I'm sure he'd appreciate it . . ."

"Don't worry Sebastian . . . I will."

"Really?" his eyes brightened slightly with relief, "Oh thank you, Miss Seles! The dress is located in the dresser in your room."

I nodded a thank you, told Lloyd I'd be down in a little bit, and began making my way up the mansion steps.

_A dress? For me? Why'd he do that for me?_

Though, I already knew the answer to that.

----

"What's wrong, Kitty-Cat? Why are you crying?" the young redhead asked as he knelt down beside his sobbing younger sister.

"I tore it . . . " the little girl whimpered, "I tore the party dress Daddy got me, and now he's mad!"

"Aww . . . Kitty-Cat, don't worry about that!"

"But it's ruined, Zelos!" she wailed.

Zelos wrapped his arms around his sobbing little sister.

"Shhh, it's all right. Calm down. It's only a dress."

"But I liked this dress and Daddy's mad!"

The redheaded boy looked to the sky as he thought for a moment then looked down at his sister with a grin. A real, honest to goodness grin.

"Aaah, Dad's always mad! And you know what? Just to prove how silly this is. . . I'll make you an even BETTER dress when I become Chosen because then I'll be all cool and awesome and stuff!"

"Really?"

"Of course Kitty-Cat! Just you wait, it'll be the best!" he chuckled as he stood up and helped the little girl up.

"I can't believe he'd remember that . . ." I sighed as I fumbled with the doorknob to her old room.

When I opened the door, it felt as if I had taken a step back in time. The room was still well kept, just like she was a young tyke. The sheets were still pink, the curtains still crimson. Even the huge hat I wore when I was young still lay on the vanity. As I picked up the hat, I noticed a picture behind it.

A vibrant redheaded boy wore a mischievous smile. His red hair was pulled back into a small ponytail, yet some of his bangs has escaped and cascaded down his marble skinned face. His arms were wrapped around a cute little tyke with pink hair. She wore a hat two sizes too big for her head and a smile that framed her childlike innocence. Big Brother and Kid Sister.

I swooned over the picture, "why couldn't we have just stayed kids? Stupid tykes who didn't have to worry about murders, or banishment, or Chosens, or any of that stuff. . ."

Shaking my head, I reached toward the dresser door. When I opened it, I couldn't help but gasp in surprise. Before my eyes hung one of the most beautiful dresses I had ever seen. Then I noticed a gleam of white. A letter? I clutched the letter and carefully opened it. It, like everything in that dresser, smelled like Zelos' cologne.

_Hey Kitty-Cat,_

_I don't know when you'll ever read this, if you'll even read this. Heh, I'll probably be old news by the time you're reading this._

I had the overwhelming urge to throw the insensitive piece of parchment across the room as I read that last sentence, yet sucked it up and decided to read on.

_Sorry it took me so long to get your dress made. You know me, stupid and slow to fulfill promises. I took the idea from several different hunnies from around Tethealla, because I thought you'd like some mixed culture. I even swiped the sash idea from my violent hunny in Mizuho. So, be proud of it. _

_Anyway, I hope you like the dress. It was the sole thing I could think of as a gift for you. If you don't like it, you can always probably pawn it off to some other mystery hunny._

_Much love from your idiot brother,_

_Zelos_

I stared at the scrawled handwriting as a reached for the dress on the hanger. I dropped the letter into my lap, and clutched the dress and rubbed my cheek against the soft fabric.

I sat like that for seemingly an eternity.

The dress still smelled of my big brother's cologne.

**----**

**There you go! I did it! Yay!**

**Please read and review!**


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